Fireheart's Betrayal
by Jayie The Hufflepuff
Summary: In a stunning twist, the noble Fireheart betrays his Clan. Can a timid loner save ThunderClan from disaster?
1. Something's Different

Tigerclaw slipped quietly into Bluestar's den, his paws making no noise on the sandy floor. Yowls and screeches pierced the air outside. The blue-gray leader was battling a large white tom with jet black paws. Tigerclaw dragged the cat off of his leader, and hissed softly in his ear, "Go rejoin the fight, Blackfoot. I'll kill her." The former ShadowClan deputy gave a short, barely detectable nod, then fled the den with a yowl of pain. Tigerclaw turned to face Bluestar. He snorted, "Fighting skills a little rusty, Bluestar? I could help you with that, you know." He taunted her. Bluestar, however, was barely paying his tone of voice any mind. She mewed distractedly, "We'll worry about that later, Tigerclaw. The Clan needs us now." Tigerclaw hissed in a low, soft voice, "No. The Clan needs _me._" He unsheathed his claws, and let out a low snarl.  
Bluestar stared at Tigerclaw in surprise. "Tigerclaw? What are you doing?" She began to back away from him, but he began to circle her, cutting off her exit. He let out a menacing snarl. "Remember me by StarClan, Bluestar." Bluestar's eyes flashed in anger. "Tigerclaw, what is this? I'm the leader of your Clan, or have you forgotten that?" She unsheathed her claws, and flattened her ears against her head. Tigerclaw snarled, "Not for much longer. I'm going to kill you, and kill you again. As many times as it takes for you to join StarClan forever. It's time for _me _to lead this Clan!" With that, he leaped. He pinned the frail leader to the sandy floor easily, and barely felt her claws slicing through his shoulder. He was just about to finished her off when he heard a cat enter the den. He looked up, and saw Fireheart staring at them, shock written clearly on his face.  
The ginger tom's face faded from shock into a look of exasperation. "Finally!" He hissed. "I thought you'd never get around to it!" Both Bluestar and Tigerclaw stared at the warrior in shock. The deputy was the first to speak. "Come again?" But Bluestar, who had regained her senses, used this distraction to her advantage. She knocked Tigerclaw off of her, and knocked him to the ground. The two cats rolled for a moment, and then Tigerclaw felt Bluestar's weight being lifted off of him. He looked up, and his jaw dropped in shock. The former kittypet had his former leader pinned to the ground. Bluestar was staring up at Fireheart in shock. "How could you, Fireheart? I trusted you. More then Tigerclaw, more then any cat, I trusted you."  
Fireheart gave a sinister smile, and meowed, "How can I? Oh, it's fairly easy, let me assure you. It's really easy, after watching you nearly destroy ThunderClan! When Brokenstar and his warriors steal ThunderClan kits, what do you do? You welcome him in like he's a lost kit! When Graystripe betrays his Clan for a RiverClan cat, what do you do? Absolutely nothing! When me and Ravenpaw warn you about Tigerclaw's treachery, what do you do? You make him deputy! You would have destroyed ThunderClan! Now, Tigerclaw will bring us into a great new era, where cats can live in peace, and where ThunderClan will be the strongest cat in the forest!" He slashed at her shoulder, then climbed off of her, holding her pinned with one paw. "Finish her, Tigerclaw. She's on her last life." Tigerclaw gaped at his former enemy, then smiled slowly. "With pleasure."  
Suddenly, Graystripe burst into the den. He stood panting, blood trickling out of his mouth, not noticing the scene in front of him. "Bluestar, we-" Then he saw his best friend pinning down the leader of his Clan. His amber eyes flew wide open with shock. "Fireheart, what are you doing?" Fireheart turned to Tigerclaw. "Kill Bluestar. I'll handle the traitor here." With that, Fireheart leaped at his best friend, hackles raised. Tigerclaw turned on Bluestar with an evil grin. "Tell StarClan to meet me at the Moonstone tonight." With that, he bit down on Bluestar's neck, hard. She let out a shriek of pain, but it was soon cut off as she went limp. Satisfied that she was dead, Tigerclaw turned in time to see Fireheart standing over Graystripe. "Greet Silverstream and Spottedleaf for me, would you Graystripe?" Fireheart taunted cruelly. Then he slashed open Graystripe's throat, and watched with a grin on his face as his best friend bled to death.


	2. The Plan is in Motion

Fireheart looked up at Tigerclaw with an evil grin. "Let us rejoin the battle, my leader." Tigerclaw nodded, still wary of his former enemy. They were about to leave the den when Sandstorm raced into the den. She was bleeding heavily from the shoulder, and she leaned against the entrance to the den. "Blues-" She broke off, staring in disbelief at Bluestar and Graystripe's bodies. She looked up at Fireheart with shock in her green eyes. "Fireheart, what in the name of StarClan happened in here?"  
Fireheart looked deep into Sandstorm's eyes, shock, betrayal, and misery plain to see in his green eyes. "Sandstorm, Graystripe attacked Bluestar. H-he would have killed her if I hadn't…" He trailed off, hanging his head. Impressed with Fireheart's quick thinking, Tigerclaw stepped forward quickly. "It wasn't your fault, Fireheart." He turned to Sandstorm and explained heavily, "Graystripe went mad, saying that it was all Bluestar's fault that his RiverClan mate was dead. Fireheart tried to keep him off of Bluestar, but Graystripe was too angry. He tried to kill Fireheart. Fireheart killed him in self-defense." He looked down at Fireheart with a grudging respect in his eyes. "He fought well, for a kittypet." The entire Clan knew that Fireheart and Tigerclaw didn't get along. He didn't want to change that just yet. It would look suspicious.  
Sandstorm stared at Graystripe's body in shock for a moment, then shook herself as if emerging from water. She mewed urgently, "Tigerclaw, we're losing the fight. The Clan will grieve the loss of Bluestar…" At this, her eyes filled with grief and sorrow, and her tail drooped. She continued, "but we need you. We're losing." Tigerclaw nodded, and it was all he could do to make himself look tired and grief-stricken when in reality his heart was leaping in excitement.  
Tigerclaw raced out of the den, and yowled, "To Bluestar!" That was the signal. That was how the rouges knew that Bluestar was dead. Tigerclaw raced into the clearing and fell like fury upon his enemies. He leaped on Blackfoot, and knocked him to the ground, pretending to bite him hard on the throat. Blackfoot let out a pretend yowl of pain, and knocked Tigerclaw off of him, hissing. Tigerclaw hissed at Blackfoot, than charged away, dragging Boulder off of Mousefur, who was bleeding heavily from the shoulder. He knocked him to the ground, and pretended to bite down hard on his shoulder. Boulder scratched Tigerclaw's shoulder, hissing. It had been agreed that the rouge cats would injure Tigerclaw some, so that he looked like he had honestly been fighting the rouges.  
Suddenly, an unfamiliar yowl came from the top of the ravine, and Tigerclaw looked up in time to see a fresh patrol of cats pouring into the ravine. Tigerclaw's eyes widened as he recognized Leopardfur, deputy of RiverClan, at their head, followed by the warrior Stonefur, and many others Tigerclaw did not recognize. RiverClan had come to help. It wasn't part of Tigerclaw's plan, not by a long shot, but it would help to make the rouges' defeat look believable. The rouges yowled in terror as the RiverClan cats leaped onto them. It wasn't long before Blackfoot yowled, "Retreat!"  
Tigerclaw yowled to his Clanmates, "Stop them!" Longtail, Stonefur, Runningwind, Willowpelt, Leopardfur, and Tigerclaw outpaced the rouges, and stood in front of them, barring their exit. Tigerclaw and Leopardfur stood side by side, snarling at the rouges. Tigerclaw felt a strange warmth rush through him as his pelt brushed Leopardfur's, but he ignored it. He snapped at the rouges, "You have thirty hearbeats to explain yourselves before I rip your pelts off." Blackfoot pushed past Russetfur to stand in front of Tigerclaw. He snarled, "We don't have to explain ourselves to you." Russetfur snapped, "Blackfoot, what's the use of hiding? We're starving! Any cat with eyes can see that!" It was true. Tigerclaw could count all of Russetfur's ribs through her fur."Besides that, we're homeless, and one of these ThunderClan scum," she glared at Tigerclaw as she spoke, "killed one of our Clanmates!" Tigerclaw's eyes widened in pretend shock. "A ThunderClan cat killed one of you? Who was it?"  
Before Blackfoot could answer, Fireheart spoke up. His eyes were wide with horror, and he mewed in anquish, "Graystripe came back to camp with bloody paws one day, and he smelled of death. I asked him why, and he said he had dragged a dead rouge off of the Thunderpath. Now I understand. He must have killed that rouge." Fireheart hung his head in shame of his friend. Tigerclaw was thoroughly impressed with Fireheart's story. It was a great idea to blame the crime on a cat who wasn't there to defend himself. Blackfoot looked a tiny bit surprised at Fireheart's support, but went along with it. "Yes, it was that gray cat with the stripe down his back. We couldn't just let our friend be killed without avenging his death." Tigerclaw looked into Blackfoot's eyes for a long moment, pretending to measure his story. Then he mewed heavily. "Very well. I can understand that. You may leave this place in peace." Before Blackfoot could ask to join, Mousefur hissed, "Tigerclaw, that isn't your descision to make, it's Bluestar's." Tigerclaw mewed sadly, "Not anymore." Then he raised his voice for every cat to hear, "Bluestar is dead!"


	3. Easy as Lying

Gasps of shock rang through the Clan. Leopardfur bowed her head, and mewed to Tigerclaw, "Bluestar was a wise and powerful leader, and RiverClan will mourn her loss along with ThunderClan." Her eyes, while clouded with grief for the "brave" ThunderClan leader, were sharp with shrewd intelligence, and they didn't blink as she gazed into Tigerclaw's eyes. The dark tabby was impressed. Even while helping her allies, she was still measuring their strength, searching for weak points. Always prepared. She continued, "RiverClan wishes you well in your leadership, but we must leave now. Crookedstar will wonder what has become of us." She bowed her head to Tigerclaw shortly, and then signaled her Clanmates to follow her. Tigerclaw was almost sorry to see the she-cat go.  
Tigerclaw turned to the rouges. He pretended to look Blackfoot up and down, measuring him shortly. Then he mewed slowly, "Blackfoot, ThunderClan mourns your loss. However, there may be something we can offer you as a compensation. As you can see, we are short on warriors. Would you like to join ThunderClan?" As soon as he spoke the words had come out of his mouth, yowls of protest rang through the air. Mousefur yowled, "Are you _insane_, Tigerclaw? They killed Bluestar!"  
Fireheart suddenly yowled, "No, they didn't!" Silence fell over the Clan, and they all turned to face the flame-colored warrior. "Well?" Mousefur inquired icily. "Who did then?" Fireheart hung his head, and mewed, his voice cracking, "I-it was… Graystripe." Stunned silence fell over the Clan. No one seemed to be able to find anything to say to that. Fireheart explained hoarsely, "H-he blamed her for S-silverstream's death. He went mad. T-there wasn't a-anything I could…" His voice trailed off miserably, his whole body trembling in shock and betrayal. Sandstorm padded up to him, and laid her tail across his shoulders comfortingly. Tigerclaw was immensely impressed.  
Blackfoot looked carefully at Tigerclaw, measuring him. Finally he mewed, "We accept your offer, Tigerclaw. ShadowClan is no longer our Clan. We will be loyal to ThunderClan." Tigerclaw nodded curtly. "See that you are." Then he turned to Darkstripe. "Make them nests in the warriors den." Darkstripe nodded, and scurried off to the Warriors Den, eager to please. Then Tigerclaw turned to the Clan and said, "I will travel to the Moonstone tonight to receive my nine lives and name!" The Clan was grumbling a bit about the rouges, but they managed to yowl in approval of Tigerclaw's leadership.  
Later that night, Tigerclaw and Yellowfang crept silently through the tunnels of the Moonstone. Tigerclaw felt slightly anxious as they neared the cave. What if StarClan refused to give him his nine lives and name? His tail gave a nervous twitch. He would fight them if he had too. Could you kill cats that were already dead? He didn't know.  
Finally, they reached the moonlit cavern. The beauty of the stone had long since ceased to amaze Tigerclaw. Now, he just wanted his nine lives and name. Slowly, he crouched beside the rock, pressed his nose to it, and closed his eyes.


End file.
